Weekend Reads | 13

Photo Credit: Cambiando Strada

An art history lesson on Christmas window displays... Losing Ourselves in Holiday Windows | Collectors Weekly

If you're a crafty person, here are some ideas... 13 DIY Gifts That Will Make Your Friends and Family Feel SO Loved | WhoWhatWear

... and a few more creative ideas... 24 Cute and Incredibly Useful Gift Wrap DIYs | BuzzFeed

Over 70 local retailers in Newport are participating in the Cities by the Sea Holiday Shop & Stroll... Newport Retailers Launch "Holiday Shop & Stroll" | The Newport Blast

Arbonne is having a lot of great deals this month for the holiday season, like 20% off CC cream... Holiday Gift Ideas for Everyone | Arbonne

Learn how to avoid scams while you're shopping online... Holiday Shopping and Phishing Attacks | Pell Center

Narragansett/Newport: Back to Work and All on the Line

Going back to work was not a challenge. In fact, I was happy to get back into a routine--wake up, get dressed, do my "outfit of the day" Instagram photo, and grab a Starbucks before going to the Pell Center. I am working on a project that will hopefully be done before school starts, so it's like I'm already starting off the semester!

After browsing Netflix on my tablet, I discovered the second season of All on the Line with Joe Zee was uploaded. I have already breezed through half of the season--it is six episodes in all--but I wish there were more. The last episode features Joe helping Nicole Miller revamp her line for New York Fashion Week and I cannot wait to see it.

Source: google.com via Mia on Pinterest

Today's Outfit: Blazer, Express; Shirt, Gap; Jeans, Express; Boots, Forever 21; Bracelets, Alex and Ani

Source: Uploaded by user via Mia on Pinterest

Newport/Narragansett: Election Day Recap

As you may already know, President Barack Obama was re-elected for his second-term in office... 

This was the first year I voted, via absentee ballot, and I am proud to have voted for President Obama and look forward to what lies ahead for the United States. I am hopeful that the President's goals will gain momentum and be realized, given the next four years to show America that he can make a difference.

Here's an excerpt from a blog post I wrote for the Pell Center Blog earlier today regarding the election:

Overall, Congress maintained the same setup it has had for the past two years–Democratic majority in the Senate, Republican majority in the House of Representatives. It is my greatest hope that the parties will finally work together and accomplish something, but there are already roadblocks in the way of building a united, cooperative Congress. Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell’s statementdoes not reflect optimism from the right. Afterall, McConnell it was McConnell who adopted the mentality to make Obama a “one term president” during the 2008 election. 

It’s this mentality of inflexibility, negativity, and self-righteousness that has kept the nation from progress. 

I hope the nasty badgering from both sides comes to a halt or, at the very least, stops in Washington D.C. . I hope that the White House is listening to the pressure put on by the American people, including President Obama and Congress, to collaborate. I hope Congress will be obliged to move beyond partisanship and create an America that benefits the whole nation. 

Now that the winners have taken their tiaras, it’s time to move past the beauty pageant, kick off those sparkling, towering high heels, and get to work.

Not only is this the election year for Obama, but I believe this is the year for America. God Bless.

In case you missed the president's acceptance speech, here it is:

Newport/Narragansett: Wading Through Wednesday; PGC 2012 Day 17

It's been so busy--I would love to sleep again eventually! I've been getting up early, but moving more lethargically. That's really not okay.

After French, I went to work at the Pell Center and wrote a blog post on the lecture and the presidential debate. Everyone I talked to about the lecture thought that it was too boring, but I would argue that the discussion of faithful citizenship in the voting boot and beyond was very interesting. 

From work, I conducted my work for PGC 2012 Day 17 challenge, School Food. As I will not for the umpteenth time, I do not live on campus or have a meal plan--you cannot gain admission into the dining hall without having a meal plan. Thankfully, the lunch lady recognized me and let me in so I could take pictures. People kept looking at me like I was crazy, probably asking themselves "What is that girl doing taking pictures all over the cafeteria?" Hopefully they just briefly passed judgment, called me weird, and moved on.

My favorite part of today's challenge was talking with peers and faculty about what the dining hall services could do to improve the health and sustainability of the food. It amazed me how everyone offered different suggestions and opinions, but those ideas could really contribute to the betterment of campus dining.  

Miley Dining Hall- the main dining facility on campus

The cafeteria uses local milk provided by Rhody Fresh

I never noticed until today that there was a sustainability wall with all of the dining services' initiatives to go green. 

One part of today's challenge was comparing a conventional vending machine and its snacks to an alternative list of healthier snacks we had to find.  

Today's Outfit: Scarf, Old Navy; Sweater, Simply Vera by Vera Wang; Tights, Hue; Dress, vintage; Boots, LUV

Newport/Narragansett: Presidential Debate Watch and PGC 2012 Day 16

It was a long day--I was on campus from 8:30 am this morning until 11:00 pm.

Between a full day of classes and staying for a lecture and the presidential debate watch, with some class reading in between, I did not have time to do the higher levels of PGC 2012 Day 16 challenge on paper. As much as I want to dedicate all of my time to PGC 2012, become a high-scoring finalist, and be able to go to the "Green University" conference in California, I need to remember that I have research papers and take-home midterms to take care of first.

Dr. Peter Steinfels of Fordham University was the featured lecturer prior to the debate watch, co-hosted by the Pell Center for International Relations, the Mercy Center, and the Religious & Theological Studies Department. The theme of his lecture was "Faithful Partisanship in a Partisan World," which discussed the role of religion, specifically in Catholicism, and how it creates tension for voters, because of the clash of personal, religious, and societal interests. Dr. Steinfels emphasized the importance of "the Cardinal virtue of prudence," which ultimately guides other virtues.

It is interesting to see how the role of religion can be illustrated in a contemporary light. What I enjoyed about this lecture, was that the notion of faithful citizenship exists beyond election day, but should also be in our every day lives.

Today's Outfit: Vest; Pants, Gap; Sweater, Old Navy; Shoes, Ralph Lauren; Scarf, (from Crosswynds Traders)

I liked this outfit better when the vest was worn in its reverse

Newport/Narragansett: Three Mansions, Two Letters, and One Church; PGC 2012 Days 14-15

My grandparents paid a short visit before heading to the Ocean House in Westerly, but other than that, not much else happened. I rested around the house and tried to do homework without slumping into a nap--winning another PGC 2012 challenge (Packaged Foods!) still kept my spirits up.

The PGC 2012 Day 14 Challenge was about sustainable agriculture. This challenge seemed to have some overlap with the Meatless Monday challenge, but it's hard to separate the two when they're so interconnected. One part of the challenge included tracking a dairy product you commonly eat/drink: I drink almond milk. It's not even from an animal. Even so, I was surprised to find that the company who produced the almond milk is not Fair Trade Certified. 

Today, I helped start a clothing drive co-hosted by the university's College Democrats and College Republicans clubs on campus. Students can donate gently used or new cold winter clothing to any bins designated on campus. This donation drive was inspired by PGC 2012 Day 7's extra credit and it gave me the motivation to do something productive and beneficial to the community. All donations will be given to the Martin Luther King Center/Child and Family.

PGC 2012 Day 15 focused on Fair Trade, something I've managed to discuss in nearly all of my answers to the previous challenges. The extra credit for this challenge was to create an event inspired by Fair Trade. My event was an afternoon tea with Turning Green Founder Erin Schrode about either eco-living in college or sustainability ethics in business. I realize it was not the most well written proposal--it is 3:00 am--but I hope someone will see it and take it seriously enough to consider holding the event. 

For the Packaged Foods challenge, I wrote a letter to Starbucks about the presence of artificial sweeteners in their breakfast sandwiches and the absence of Fair Trade or organic ingredients.

There is a donation bin in the Pell Center of International Relations...

And in the office of Community Service in Wakehurst...

And the Mercy Center, as well as the Academic Development Center in McAuley (not pictured)

Today's Outfit: Dress, H&M; Cardigan, Vera Wang for Kohl's; Scarf, LF; Earrings, aerie

Newport: Pell, Presidential Debate and PGC 2012, Days 3-5

On Wednesday, I started my work study at the Pell Center of International Relations. I am responsible for several duties, including blogging about one public policy issue throughout the year (I chose to focus on fair trade), attending Pell Center lectures and updating the social media pages. I stayed at the Pell Center after my work study hours, because I volunteered for the viewing of the Obama v. Romney presidential debate, as well as the foreign policy debate preceding it. It was a long night, but I was happy to participate in conversations the next day.

On Thursday, G. Wayne Miller of The Providence Journal spoke to my Magazine Feature Writing class about how he wrote An Uncommon Man: The Life and Times of Senator Claiborne Pell. He showed us some pictures of the research documents, the places he visited, the people he met, even pictures of Senator Pell in his last days and pictures of his funeral at Trinity Church. Miller told Pell's story beautifully, I look forward to reading the biography someday.

Today, nothing of particular note happened. Class. Work study. Project Green Challenge stuff. Homework. I signed up for a trip to the New England Aquarium in Boston next weekend--that will be fun.

The Project Green Challenge 2012 is going pretty well. I am on the lower end of the leader board, but still one of the higher scores nonetheless. It's been a great initiative to participate in so far.

Wednesday's Outfit: Sweater, aerie; Scarf, aerie; Leggings, Gap; Boots, Coach

Thursday's Outfit: Sweater, vintage; Scarf, (from Crosswynds Traders); Shorts, Banana Republic; Tights, Leggs; Boots, Coach

Today's Outfit: Cardigan, Chili Pepper; Tank Top, Parang; Leggings (from LF); Sandals, (from Mr. Shoes UK)